Tree smashes through home nearly crushing people inside

Grants Pass, Ore. -- It was a close call for one Grants Pass woman when a giant oak tree fell onto her house and landed right in between where she and her neighbor were sitting.

Angie Ferrara and her neighbor Chris were sitting on separate recliners at her duplex on S.E. Green Briar Lane Saturday evening. They were watching TV when the tree came smashing through the ceiling.

Ferrara's son, Chico Sotelo, shares the house with his mother. He said he was out at a friends barbecue when he got a call from Chris telling him what happened.

"I could tell by the tone of his voice and the panic you know when somebody isn't joking around," Sotelo said.

Sotelo thought it might have been just a branch that fell off the tree, but when he got home he couldn't believe his eyes. The whole tree had smashed through the roof. Both Ferrara and Chris walked away without injuries.

"Somebody was watching over them that's for sure," Sotelo said.

Two days later crews are still removing parts of the tree from the home. One of the workers said the tree was blown over by a strong gust of wind. But the tree was so old it's roots were rotting and it didn't have a stable foundation.

Sotelo said even though most of the their things are ruined, he's looking at a bigger picture.

"It's sad about the house but it's all materialistic those things can be replaced," he said.

Copyright KOBI-TV. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without written permission.